NORMAL, Ill. – For the first time in program history seven Redbirds reached double figures as Illinois State women's basketball (6-1, 0-0 MVC) rolled by Chicago State (0-12) 102-47 for a fifth straight win Thursday night.
HIGHLIGHTS
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DeAnna Wilson and Kate Bullman recorded Illinois State's first two double-doubles of the season Thursday in just 17 minutes and 19 minutes respectively. Wilson did so in the first half alone with 14 points and 10 rebounds. She finished with her second 20-plus point scoring night and her first double-figure rebounding night this year. Bullman grabbed 12 rebounds in the first half, eventually securing a career-high of 17 for the night. Her three pointer with 8:05 to go in the fourth lifted Bullman into double-figure scoring for the second time this year.
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Ten different Redbirds had an assist in the win, including three players who dished four. Shannon Dowell and Lauren Cohen each set career-highs with four assists. Maya Wong also had four assists Thursday. The Redbirds finished with a season-high 22 assists, their second 20-assist performance of the season (21 vs Saint Francis Nov. 19)
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Freshman Savannah McGowan was one of three Redbird rookies in double figures. She nearly had a double-double of her own with 12 points and 9 rebounds. Dowell had 11 points with 4 rebounds and her four assists while Brooke Coffey also had 11 points, 5 rebounds and a pair of dimes. It was the second time this season that three of Illinois State's freshmen reached double-figures in the same game. Dowell, McGowan and Coffey also did so Nov. 19 vs Saint Francis.
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Illinois State raced out to a 26-12 lead at the end of the opening frame. Wilson and Wong each scored seven first-quarter points and reached double-figures before the end of the first half. Wilson, who scored six of Illinois State's first 10 in the second, opened the quarter with an old-fashioned three-point play to hit 10 for the evening. Wong's second-chance bucket at the 8:27 mark of the second moved her into double figures for the night and gave Illinois State a 36-15 lead over the Cougars. Wong scored all 12 of her points in the first half.
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The Redbirds scored 53 points in the second half, the second time this year the Redbirds have scored 50-plus points in a single half (55 in the first vs Omaha, Nov. 6) Illinois State opened the second half on a 6-0 run stretching the lead to 30 points (55-25) for the first time.
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Daijah Smith paced Illinois State in the third, scoring seven points in less than 60 seconds at around the two-minute mark. She put up a pair of fastbreak buckets and a three-pointer during the personal 7-0 run that helped Illinois State lead 74-37 heading into the fourth.
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Illinois State's lead hit 50 points for the first time in the fourth quarter as Cohen hit the back end of a pair of free throws. Dowell's free throws helped Illinois State reach 100 points on the night with 1:15 to go.
GAME NOTES
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Illinois State has now scored 100-plus points in multiple games this year. The Redbirds have not done so in multiple games in a single season since 1989-90. It is the fifth time in program history that Illinois State has scored 100-plus points in multiple games of a single season and the first time the program has achieved that mark in the 21st century. This year's squad joins the 1975-76 (3), 1977-78 (2), 1983-84 (2), 1989-90 (2) Redbird teams.
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Illinois State is the only Valley team to reach 100-plus points in multiple games this season.
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It marked the first time since 2006 that Illinois State has scored 100-plus points inside CEFCU Arena. Overall, it was the 17th performance of 100+ points in program history.
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Bullman is the first Valley player this season to grab more than 15 rebounds in a single game. It was her second performance of 15-plus rebounds in a single game this year (SIUE, 15).
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As a team, Illinois State finished with 63 rebounds, which stands as second in program history and first in CEFCU Arena history. The program single-game record is 66, set back in December of 1993 against Farleigh Dickinson. It is the first time in the 21st century that Illinois State has grabbed 60-plus rebounds in a single game.
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The Redbirds had 45 defensive rebounds, which also ranks second in program history, behind a performance of 47 against Western Illinois in January 1989.
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The Redbirds won despite shooting a season-low 5-of-21 from behind the arc (23.8 percent).
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